Lost
by Noelle Joi
Summary: When Zoey loses the love of her life she learns to face the hectic challenge of raising three young children alone...until an old friend re-enters her life. CZ
1. Chapter 1

**Lost**

-Chapter One-

It was at night when she felt the most alone. Three months had gone since Adam's funeral. The dinners and the phone calls with her friends and family had slowly come to an end. They thought she was okay now. The truth was, Zoey Taylor felt as though she would never be okay again. She had turned from a happily married, fun-loving, mother to a depressed, mom who hardly managed to keep her life together, let alone her children's.

It was so hard to believe that the accident happened only three months ago. It seemed like she had been missing her Adam for three years instead. The kids, Carly, Mariah, and Noah, were barely old enough to know what was going on. All they knew was that their daddy was missing. Zoey grew tired of them asking when he was coming home. It was killing her.

Now at three a.m. She lay awake, lost in her thoughts, lost in the memories of their wedding, of their babies being born, and wishing so badly that when she turned over in bed that she would feel the strong body of her husband. But he wasn't there. There was a whole five feet of empty bed that he would never come back to fill. Zoey stood up, walked over to the medicine cabinet, took a Tylenol p.m., and prayed the morning would come quickly.

* * *

"Mommy," Five year old, Carly Taylor jumped on her mother's bed, "Mommy wake up."

"Carly," Zoey groaned, "Let Mommy sleep for five more minutes."

"But it's eight o'clock. I read the clock and everything. I'm supposed to be at school right now."

Zoey shot out of bed, "Darn it, I'm late for work. Again!"

"Noah bit me," Carly whined about her four year old brother.

"Where?" Zoey asked, changing her socks.

"My hand."

"Let mommy see."

Carly showed Zoey a purplish bite mark. Luckily Noah didn't break the skin or draw blood like previous encounters with his sister.

"Run it under some cool water and I'll grab you some ice. Meanwhile, go get dressed or we'll be even more late for school, ok?"

"Ok," Carly ran off.

Zoey groaned as she put the rest of herself together. Late again. She would have to come up with another excuse. Her boss was not going to like this.

A skirt or dress pants, Zoey could not decide. A skirt or pants. Pants, today would definitely be a pants day. Just as she pulled up her black polyester slacks, she heard a shrill scream from Mariah's room. Zoey rushed to her baby's room. Mariah was the youngest of her kids- only 18 months. She picked up the blond hair, brown eyed Mariah and held her close to her heart.

Mariah calmed down at the touch of her mother. Zoey sat down in the blue rocking chair that Adam's mother had given them when Noah was born and fed her.

Right on time, the phone rang.

"I'll get it!" Carly sang.

"Oh no you won't!" Zoey set Mariah in her crib and ran after her five year old. She barely beat her to the phone, sure it was her boss, calling to yell at her for being late the third time in a month.

"Hello?" she said, out of breath.

"Zoey? Zoey Brooks?" The voice on the other line wasn't her bosses. It was a man, a man with an oddly familar voice.

"Um..." was all Zoey could think to say.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I mean Zoey Taylor."

"Who is this?" she finally asked.

"Guess."

Zoey sighed, "Just tell me who you are or I'm hanging up. I don't have time for this. "

"No! It's taken me a long time to gather up the nerve to call you. Please don't hang up."

"Well, than tell me who it is," Zoey was getting irritated.

"I'll give you a hint. I went to Pacific Coast Academy with you."

Zoey sat down in a light brown, wicker chair and thought back for a moment. _Of course._

"Chase Matthews?" she asked reluctantly.

"Bingo."

"Wow," was all Zoey could think to say, "...wow." She shook her head as thousands of memories flooded her brain.

"I gave you a bit of a shock, huh?"

"Well, yeah. I haven't heard from you in years. It's been what, six years? I'm 26, so yeah, six years. Wow."

"How've you been?" Chase asked.

"Oh you know, good," Zoey said out of habit.

"Really?"

"No," Zoey said, snapping back to reality, "I'm going through a pretty rough time. What about you?"

"I'm okay...I've just been very nostalgic lately and decided to look through some old boxes and found a picture of you in the good old PCA yearbook. It was then that I knew I had to hunt you down."

"Nice," Zoey said. Even though it was good to hear from him she didn't feel like talking much.

"So, Zoey Taylor, huh? I heard you got married. Nicole told me awhile ago."

Zoey's chest hurt at Chase's words, "I guess you haven't talked to Nicole in awhile."

"No, not really. Why?"

Zoey took a deep breath, "My husband, Adam, was killed in a car accident. He was coming home from work one night and a drunk driver ran right into him."

"Oh gosh, Zoe, I am so sorry."

"Yeah, well, I'd love to talk. Really I would, but I have to get to work and the kids to school. We're about an hour late."

"All right, well, I guess I'll call you later. Or you can call me if you want."

"Thank you Chase, for calling. It was so good to hear from you."

A scream and the sound of a dish being smashed sounded from the kitchen.

"Wow, what was that?" Chase asked. The noise was so loud he could even hear it.

"The kids. I've gotta go." Zoey hung up and ran to the sound of the smashed glass. She felt different though. Not as empty and hopeful that the day could get better. Chase Matthews called and that was when she realized how much she had missed him throughout the years.


	2. Chapter 2

**Lost**

-Chapter 2-

Mr. Seton was Zoey's boss. He was about fifty years old, large, balding, and very strict. Zoey received the death glare when she arrived late to work over a half hour later.

"I'm really sorry Mr. Seton," Zoey said. "I-"

"I don't want excuses. If it happens again, you're fired."

"Yes sir," Zoey sat at her desk and started working on her presentation for the meeting that afternoon. She had somehow managed to get the kids to school and daycare on time but once again she had arrived to work late. She knew she needed to get her act together. If she was to lose her job, she would be in big trouble.

* * *

Chase leaned in his recliner, his laptop next to him. He was supposed to be writing. He had to meet his deadline. But he just couldn't seem to concentrate. He was feeling horrible for Zoey. It must be awful to think your husband is well and on his way home one minute and the next finding out he was killed in an accident.

The phone rang and Chase jumped for it. He was excited to have a distraction. Maybe then he wouldn't feel so bad about procrastinating with his novel.

"Hello?"

"Why aren't you writing?"

Shoot, it was Carmen.

"Because the phone rang," Chase replied, a hint of laughter in his voice.

"Matthews you'd better get on it or your editor will not be happy with you."

"I know. I'm sorry," Chase said sincerely.

"Are you picking me up tonight?"

"Yeah, I'll be at your place around seven," Chase said. He was going to take her out dancing. She loved to dance but personally, Chase would rather watch movies and just hang out around the apartment.

"Alright, well you get back to work."

"I will."

"I love you," Carmen said.

"I love you too," Chase replied. He set the phone down on the table and continued to stare at the blank screen. He wished that Carmen would understand that he wrote in his own time and could not be rushed but Carmen was his editor and it was her job to push him. She was originally from Italy but moved when she was 18 to New York. Her beauty astounded Chase whenever she walked into a room. She was almost ridiculously, movie star beautiful- with her big dark brown eyes and the perfect brown curls that towered all down her back.

They had been dating for almost a year now. He was toying around with the idea of proposing to her, but his nerves held him back. She was spicy, outgoing, and Chase wasn't sure what she even thought about marriage.

The phone rang again.

"I'm writing, Carmen,"Chase said. (Well, he was going to.)

"What?"

"Oh, Zoey, I'm sorry," Chase smacked himself. That was the third time he had answered thinking it was Carmen when it wasn't.

"Who's Carmen?"

"Oh, she's my editor."

"Oh, well I'm on my lunch break. So I thought we could talk now. This is just about the only time I have to myself because of work and the kids to take care of."

"Sure, yeah, of course. Let's talk."

"How have you been?" Zoey asked.

"I've been alright. I'm living in New York in this really tiny, crappy apartment writing for a living. It's a pain but I love it."

"That sounds nice," Zoey said, "Are you married?"

"No...but I do have a girlfriend. We're going on about a year. That's Carmen, actually."

"Oh."

"Well, tell me about your kids," Chase said after a short moment of silence.

"Carly's my oldest. She's five years old and acts more like she's twenty-five. Noah is four and he's wild. Mariah's my youngest- 18 months old. She's actually the easiest one to deal with. Noah and Carly fight like mad. But Mariah is my breath of fresh air. She is definitely the calm of the storm."

"It must be hard, having to take care of them all by yourself."

"Some days are harder than others but I get through alright," Zoey informed him.

"I can only imagine."

There was a silence. Chase wasn't sure what to say. He didn't know how to comfort a woman who just lost her husband. It wasn't like they were young anymore and talking about juvinile things like who had a crush on who anymore. This was real life, and so far reality was smacking them both harshly across the face.

"So where have you been living?" Chase asked, finally.

"I live in Northern Wisconsin. A city called Hayward."

"How in the world did you end up there? I can't picture you living in Wisconsin!"

"Really? Where could you picture me living?"

"I don't know, L.A., New York, Chicago. Some place upbeat and quickly-paced."

"Well, I've converted. I'm 100 percent suburban now."

"Wow."

"I've even got the suburban mom hair," Zoey laughed.

"Well, I'm going to need to get over to Wisconsin. I want to see you," Chase said.

"Come any time. But Chase, I've got to go. My lunch break is going to be over in about ten minutes and I still haven't eaten my sandwich."

"Oh, of course. You go eat. I should get back to writing anyhow," Chase said.

"Talk to you later," Zoey said.

"Yes, hopefully soon," Chase added.

"Good-bye."

"Bye."

* * *

A/N: Yes, I did set part of the story in Wisconsin again. I have a freakish obsession with Wisconsin, what can I say?


	3. Chapter 3

**Lost**

-Chapter 3-

Two months after Chase's phone call and not much has changed in Zoey's hectic life. The kids were still crazy, work was still extremely stressful, and the left side of her bed was still empty at night (except for the occasional night when Carly crawled into bed because she had a nightmare). Adam was still gone. Nothing would or could ever change that. It broke Zoey's heart over and over each day. Chase called her often now, checking in to see how she was doing.

It was a Monday night. Zoey and the kids had just gone grocery shopping. Carly and Noah were bickering. Mariah just woke up from a nap in the car and was screaming as Zoey pulled in the drive way. There was a red car with a New York license plate on the back bumper. At first Zoey was confused. After a minute though it clicked. _Chase_, Zoey thought. Kids you stay in the car. Mommy's gonna be right back, ok?

"Ok," Noah and Carly echoed back. Then they continued arguing.

Zoey knocked on the car door and there he was. Chase. He opened the door.

"Chase! What are you doing here?"

"You said I could visit anytime and well, I got some time off work so I decided to surprise you," Chase smiled.

"This is an amazing, wonderful surprise!" Zoey hugged him and they didn't let go for about a minute. Chase heard her make a weird muffled sound. He took her by the shoulders and looked at her. She was crying.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Chase asked, worried.

"Nothing, nothing. I am just so happy... I missed you so much. I missed this. Hugging you. I missed you. I just I feel so bad that we lost touch."

"I know. Me too," Chase said tenderly.

"Mommy? Who's that?" Noah asked. He and Carly were staring.

"This is my old friend, Chase."

"He doesn't look so old," Carly said.

"No, I mean, he's a friend from my old school."

"Oh,"Noah smiled at Chase. "Hi, hi!"

"Hey," Chase waved and smiled at Noah.

"Oh, hold on a minute, let me go get Mariah." Zoey rushed to her black SUV and pulled out a calmer Mariah," Chase, this is my youngest daughter, Mariah."

Chase looked at the blond haired, blue eyed Mariah, and made a weird face, causing Mariah to giggle.

Zoey laughed at Chase. "Come on in," she unlocked the door.

Chase walked to the cluttered house looking around, wide eyed. Zoey was usually such a neat freak.

"If I had known you were coming I would have cleaned up a bit," Zoey said.

"It's ok," Chase said.

They walked into the kitchen.

"Noah, Carly, I want you both to go brush your teeth and get you pajamas on, ok?" Zoey said.

"Ok, mommy," Noah and Carly ran upstairs.

"Wow. They're good listeners," Chase said as he sat down at the table.

"Yeah, that's a freak accident. Normally I have to fight tooth and nail to get them to do anything. Do you want some coffee?"

"Sure," Chase said.

"Well, now you're getting the visual. I told you my life was hectic," Zoey poured a cup of coffee for Chase and a glass of water for herself and sat across from him, Mariah bouncing on her knee.

"I see that," Chase said as he took a sip of coffee."Mm, that's good. What kind is it?"

"Maxwell House," Zoey replied.

"Ah, good stuff," Chase said as he continued to drink it.

"So, what are you doing here, Chase? I mean really," Zoey said.

"I wanted to see you," Chase replied. "I wanted to make sure that you were ok."

"Well, I'll let you use your judgment on that one. And don't you have a girlfriend? Cameron?"

"Carmen. And, no. We broke it off a couple weeks ago. My contract is broken too. I can't write a thing. So I thought before I go through the misery of finding a new job in New York City that I'd surprise you."

"Oh, I'm sorry. About the break up, I mean. And your writer's block."

"It's ok. Apparently we weren't all that serious anyway," Chase shrugged.

"Right," Zoey's gaze fell on a family picture from the year before. She gently picked it up and pointed at her husband. "That's Adam."

"Nice," Chase said. "I'm really sorry, Zoey, for your loss."

"I know you are," Zoey smiled. "It's just going to take awhile to heal."

"That's understandable,"Chase said. "You're kids are beautiful."

"Thanks."

Just then, Carly and Noah ran downstairs.

"Well, here's my beautiful kids," Zoey smiled. The two were giggling and ran to Zoey.

"What's so funny, guys?" Chase asked.

"Noah pooped in the bathtub!" Carly said with a giggle.

Chase looked at a wary Zoey.

"That is not funny," Zoey said. "I want the two of you to go upstairs right now and get in bed. I'll be up in a minute to tuck you in."

The children obeyed and started back up the stairs.

"I remember when poop was hilarious. Those were good times," Chase said with a far off look in his eyes.

Zoey groaned and got the disinfectant and some paper towels and said with a groan, "I'll be right back."

"Wait, Zoe. Let me do it. You have your hands full," Chase said.

Zoey looked at him and smiled, "That sounds great, Chase. Really. But I can't let you do that, I-"

"Don't worry about it. You go tuck your kids in and teach them about the appropriate places to empty their waste. I will go clean."

Zoey smiled, "All right."

Chase cleaned up the mess and Zoey tucked the kids in. Mariah was last. She went right to sleep. It was a long day for her. Quietly Zoey tip toed into the bathroom where Chase was holding a plastic bag.

"Um, where would you like me to dispose of this?" Chase asked.

"I got it," Zoey took the plastic bag and then asked, "Hey where are you staying?"

"Um, I was going to get a room somewhere."

"You can stay on the couch if you want. It's not the most comfortable couch in the world but it would be better than a motel," Zoey offered.

"Sure. That would be great," Chase said.

Zoey got the extra blankets out and set the couch up for him.

"You can watch tv if you want. Here's the remote. Or you can plug in your laptop. I think theres a plug around here somewhere. Feel free to eat anything in the kitchen. We don't have much but-"

"Zoe," Chase stopped her, "I'll be fine."

Zoey smiled, "Alright, well, I better get to bed. It's been great seeing you again."

Chase gave her a quick hug, "Sweet dreams, Zoey."

"Good night," Zoey walked up stairs.


	4. Chapter 4

**Lost**

-Chapter 4-

Chase woke up to the sound of a screaming baby. At first he was confused. It took him a minute to remember that he traveled all the way to Wisconsin and slept on his old friend's couch. It was all coming back to him. Getting fired, Breaking up with Carmen, Driving a long nineteen and hours to Hayward, Wisconsin to see a girl he hadn't even corresponded with in years.

He sat up, rubbed his eyes, and not even a second later another piercing wail came from upstairs. Chase rushed up.

"Zoey, do you need my help?"

Chase popped his head in Zoey's bedroom. The red and gold comforter was lumped together, throw pillows were scattered on the floor. Zoey was still in her pajamas, wrestling with Carly on the bed, trying to get her into her outfit. Carly was a mess of brown curls. The little girl's face was bright red with tears escalating down her cheeks.

"Good morning Chase," Zoey looked up from her tackle position on her daughter. She almost had to yell her greeting.

"Do you need any help?" Chase repeated.

"Um," Zoey successfully got one of Carly's arms through the red shirt. "Could you just go put some pop tarts in the toaster for the kids?"

"Sure. Anything for you?"

"Um, no, I'm fine. I've got something in my desk at work," Zoey lied. The truth was, it was killing her already to let Chase see her not all put together. It was embarrass her even more to have him make her breakfast.

"Okay," Chase shut the door behind him. As he started to walk back down the stairs he heard Carly shriek, "I...DON'T...WANT...TO...GO...TO...SCHOOL!" Reluctantly he searched the kitchen for the pop tarts. After a minute or two of rummaging around he found raspberry pop tarts in the cupboard next to the fridge. He opened a package and stuck the pastries in the toaster. While he was waiting his eyes fell on picture of Zoey and the man he assumed was Adam. He had short wavy black hair, green eyes, and was only about an inch or two taller than Zoey. They were sitting at a dinner table, probably at a fancy restaurant, with extremely cheeky smiles. Zoey's hair was longer and with highlights. The Zoey in the picture looked a lot more like the Zoey he once knew.

Not that Zoey looked bad now. She was still as beautiful as ever, but he could tell, Zoey was drained.

About five minutes later, when he heard the sound of shattering glass, Chase decided to go back upstairs. He found Zoey in the bathroom sweeping up a broken picture frame. Her teeth were clenched and her face was red with anger.

"Are you ok? Did anyone get hurt?" Chase asked.

Zoey shook her head. Carly and Noah were quiet now, sitting on the bed. Mariah was still fussing. Chase found the blond baby in her crib, he picked her up gently and she was quiet.

Finally when Zoey was finished sweeping up the glass, she showed Chase the torn photo. It was Zoey and Adam on their wedding day. "Adam had this framed for me." She said softly. "He knew it was my favorite picture. He even had the frame engraved."

Chase nodded sympathetically.

"I set Carly down on the sink and she knocked it down."

Chase was unsure of what to say but he didn't have to think about that for awhile.

"Oh my goodness!" Zoey looked at her watch. "I'm late! What am I going to do? My boss warned me, if I was late again, he'd fire me! And I still have to get the kids to daycare!"

Chase's face brightened. He had an idea. "I'll take them. Just give me the address and I'll type it into my handy little navigation system."

"Chase, I don't know..."

"Please, let me repay you. I'm sure my little surprise visit didn't help lower the stress in your life."

"Alright, I suppose it wouldn't really hurt anything. You'll need the car seat of course. And I'll need to call Cuddle's Clubhouse to let them know you'll be dropping them off."

"Not a problem. I'll go get the carseat and put it in my car."

"Thank you Chase. I'll find a way to repay you. I don't work weekends. Maybe if you'll stick around I'll show you around the town or something. We can go out to dinner at-"

"Zoe? Work?"

"Oh goodness, right." Zoey rushed to get everything together. In only a couple of minutes Zoey was on her way to work and Chase was on his way to the daycare. After that he wasn't sure of what was going to happen. It was all very up in the air.

* * *

A/N:

1.) Yes, I know that it took me seven months to update this story. Here's the explanation: I'm a jerk who has writer's block/a full time job.

2.) Even though I haven't been writing much I have been reading some stories. I've been trying to keep up with everything. It makes me pretty said that Zoey/Chase stories have sort of phased out. Though other couples are good too. I tolerate mostly everything.

And seriously, what is with eveyone freaking out about "cleaning up the Zoey 101 archive". Why can't everyone just worry about their own stories? If you see a story with bad grammar in the title or stupid summaries, here's an idea: DONT READ IT! There's no use in getting so worked up over it. That's just going to make people upset and start a bunch of drama. Take pride in your own work and if others don't take pride in theirs, seriously, get over it! That's their problem. I understand reviews with constructive critique but reviews that are flat out rude...I just don't understand.

That's my two cents with that issue.

Oh by the way, I actually know where I am going with this story now...so maybe I'll finish it soon.


	5. Chapter 5

**Lost**

-Chapter 5-

Chase took three screaming kids into the daycare that he found after driving around in circles for about an hour. He was uncomfortable when he dropped the kids off. Mariah was clinging to his neck while Carly and Noah had strategically plastered themselves to his legs, so that he could barely get through the door. All three continued to scream.

"Is this normal?" Chase asked the director of the center, Jenny.

"Upon arrival, yes. They usually calm down after a couple of minutes when Ms. Brooks leaves," Jenny said.

Chase looked at her and then looked at the kids. For some reason, he seriously doubted that.

Against the feeling he had to take the kids right back in the car and back home, he let Jenny and one of the assistant's Rhonda take the three behind the doors.

Chase started to leave but then realized he had nowhere to go. He found the men's room and then curiously peered into the window of the room that the women went through.

Not to his surprise, but to his dismay, Carly, Noah, and Mariah were all still screaming. No one was comforting them. Not even Mariah, who was put in a playpen to drown her sorrows.

Enraged, Chase wanted to burst through the doors and scoop up the kids and tell them that they would no longer be attending. But he realized that wasn't his place. So he went back to his car and dialed Zoey's work number.

"Hey what's up? Are the kid's ok?" Zoey answered. Chase could sense the stress in her voice.

"That depends on your definition on 'ok'," Chase replied dryly.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, all three of your kids are crying and no one is doing anything about it. Do they do that every day?"

"They always have a hard time getting through the door but by the time I pick them up they seem ok."

Chase told Zoey about how he waited about ten minutes and what he saw.

Zoey was silent. Chase guessed she was probably horrified at the idea of he babies crying.

"Zoe? What if I pick them up and take them back home. We can spend the day back there."

"I think that sounds like a great idea," Zoey said. Her voice sounded funny, sort of like she was choked up.

"You ok?"

She didn't answer, "I'll call the daycare and let them know that you'll be picking them up."

"Ok, see you when you get back."

"Thanks Chase."

* * *

Chase picked up the kids (who were still wailing) and finally got them calmed down when he got the older two an ice cream cone and Mariah a bottle.

Once they finished the ice cream/bottle he drove back to the cabin. They ate lunch and then while all three went down for a nap Chase decided to clean the house for Zoey. He wasn't sure what else to do, and he knew Zoey would appreciate a clean house when she got home.

He then decided to go the extra mile and decide to make dinner. He didn't know much about cooking, but Spaghetti and Meatballs seemed pretty simple.

When Zoey got home her jaw almost fell to the floor. She couldn't believe her eyes.

"Wow! Chase, you didn't have to do this," she breathed.

"You deserve it Zoe. Um, I have an idea. I don't know if you wanted to talk about it over dinner or later."

"Dinner?"

"I got kind of bored, so I made Spaghetti. I've never actually made spaghetti but I think it turned out pretty good if I do say so myself."

"It sounds delicious."

For the first time since he came up to Wisconsin, Zoey was smiling.

As they ate dinner, Chase explained more about the daycare.

"I don't know what to do, Chase. I really don't. That's the only place in town that would take Mariah, Noah, and Carly that didn't look like a dump. I can't believe them! No wonder Carly always through a fit in the morning."

"Now this is where my idea comes in," Chase took a deep breath. "What if I took care of them? I'm not really in any hurry to go back to New York. I know you could use the help and I'm not even asking for any money or anything, just a place to stay."

Zoey pondered for a moment, "Are you sure?"

Chase nodded.

"I mean, are you really sure? You'd be living with three crazy kids and their crazy mother. With poop in the bathtub, and crayons down the toilet, and-"

"I am positive, Zoe. If it makes you feel better, we'll say it's just until you get back on your feet."

"What about your writing?"

"I'll write at night. Besides, I haven't really been able to write much anyhow."

Zoey thought about it for a couple more minutes.

"Ok, but I'm going to pay you. How about 300 dollars a week? That is what I was paying the daycare."

"I'll take 150 and not a penny more."

"Deal."

Chase smiled. Zoey smiled. They shook hands.

As Chase helped Zoey clean up the kitchen he thought, _who would have guessed that I would be a nanny, let alone, __Zoey__ Brooks' nanny? _The thought depressed him a little. But it also made him smile. At least he was back in Zoey's life. She was the missing piece.

* * *

A/N: Well, that only took me a couple of weeks. I suggest those of you who even have the slightest idea that you will put your kids in daycare to look at .

The stories on that site are ridiculous.

Thanks to all that read and kudos to those who review.


	6. Chapter 6

**Lost**

-Chapter 6-

Time went by quickly. Chase fit in well in Zoey's life and she felt more relaxed having him there. The house was always clean, and Zoey never had to worry about her kids' safety. It was a little weird at first, getting to know adult-Chase better. But after awhile it felt like they had never lost touch. He moved into the lake house, (a private room with a small kitchen, a sleeping room, and a bathroom) about a half mile down.

It was mid-November now and the leaves were shades of red, orange, and yellows. It was the prettiest fall Hayward had had in a long time. Fall was Zoey's favorite season but it was also Adam's favorite, making her heart ache for him. If he was still alive he would be taking the kids to pumpkin patches and attempting a fire in the backyard with two sticks (the way he did when he was an eagle scout), and going apple picking at the county orchard.

But those memories were just memories, and no matter how hard Zoey wished he was back, she knew that he was gone. So she pushed thoughts of Adam away. She focused on the present.

The kids were getting so big! And they really seemed to be behaving better with Chase. While Carly was still unsure about him, Noah and Mariah took an instant liking to him and they formed bonds quickly.

One Saturday morning Zoey woke up early and did something she hadn't done since Adam's death- she made pancakes. It was a Saturday morning tradition before. She would make chocolate chip pancakes for Carly, and a mickey mouse pancake for Noah.

She decided to go all out and make some scrambled eggs and sausage too.

Not long after the first batch of pancakes were ready, she heard the tap of little feet step down the stairs. Chase came in through the back door too. Before she knew it, the five of them were sitting down together at the table for breakfast. It was nice. Noah and Carly were the happiest she had seen them since Adam's death. Mariah was happily sitting in her high chair eating cut up pieces of pancake.

Chase fit in.

* * *

Early December on a tuesday evening it was snowing. It was just starting but already, there was an inch of snow on the walk.

"I'm home," Zoey walked in and shook her boots on the doormat. She was covered in snow.

"Hey! We've got dinner all ready and everything," Chase greeted her as he set a frozen pizza on the kitchen table, along with some tater tots and some fruit cocktail.

Carly, Noah, and Mariah greeted their mom happily.

"Hi babies!" Zoey smiled and gave them each a hug and a kiss as she peeled off layer upon layer of her winter clothing. "Whew, it is really coming down out there."

"Shoot. I have to go run up to best buy and get a new battery for my laptop. I should probably eat dinner later and go now if I'm going to make it," Chase grabbed his coat and started to put his shoes on.

"Wait, Chase. Can't it wait until the morning? It's really nasty out there."

"I'm writing Zoey!"

"You are? That's great! How much have you written?"

"Actually I've written about three hundred pages since last week. I'm on a roll but this morning when I went to turn my laptop on the old battery finally died for good. I already called them and they have it waiting for me."

"That's great, but, Chase are you sure you don't want to wait until the morning?"

Chase could tell Zoey was worried but he did his best to reassure her,"Zoe, I will be fine. It's only a ten minute drive, I'll be back in a half hour at the most. You guys eat your pizza and tater tots. Sit down, watch a movie, and I'll be back before you get through the beginning of Dumbo."

"Ok, but, please be careful."

"I will," Chase smiled at Zoey and gave her hand a reassuring squeeze.

And then he was gone.

Zoey and the kids ate their dinner, and started Dumbo, just as Chase suggested. It was the kids favorite movie, though it always made Zoey cry.

But soon, the movie was over. It was nearing the kids' bedtime. She put Noah and Carly in the tub. And gave Mariah a bath in the sink. She tried to push the paranoia out of her mind. He was not going to end up in a car accident like Adam.

At 9:30 Carly, Noah, and Mariah were all sleeping. Zoey decided she could not wait any longer. She dialed Chase's cell phone number and got his voicemail. She dialed it three more times with the same result. She was starting to get seriously worried.

Yet, she continued her routine. She cleaned up the kitchen, and watched a little late night tv to get her mind of things.

Maybe he had just gone straigt down to the lake house! Zoey thought. So she dialed the lake house's number and there was no answer. Finally Zoey opened the front door and gazed at the falling snow. She couldn't stop worrying now.

Zoey stayed up late waiting for a phone call. But there wasn't one. There was only silence. Zoey cried herself to sleep the first time since Chase had come back into her life.


End file.
